His honesty is praiseworthy. On the other hand, his unwillingness to call out medical malpractice and blatant racial discrimination is disappointing if not blameworthy.
Though less incisive than it might have been, Black Man in a White Coat still makes an important contribution to the ongoing debate about health care in America.
Tweedy’s prose isn’t dull, but it’s not flashy, either; readers shouldn’t expect drama ripped from an episode of Grey’s Anatomy, and his self-reflection can get a bit distracting. He does, however, make a powerful case on how, in the era of Obamacare and the nation’s first black president, race can still determine who gets sick and lives, or dies.
This willingness to be self critical as well as his reluctance to be overtly partisan gives Tweedy’s book an evenhandedness that lends its conclusions added weight, even when he wades into partisan waters.
